Common Questions

What is 14ymedio and who runs it?

14ymedio is Cuba's leading independent digital news outlet, founded in 2014 and directed by journalist Yoani Sánchez, operating from Miami with correspondents inside Cuba.

Why was Yoani Sánchez detained in January 2026?

Yoani Sánchez, director of 14ymedio, was detained by Cuban State Security in Havana on 28 January 2026, one day before President Trump signed Executive Order 14380 targeting Cuba. No formal charge was publicly announced. The detention drew condemnations from RSF and CPJ. Sánchez has since continued as a contributor and podcast host; the outlet kept publishing throughout.Source: Cuba Dispatch

Can Cubans access 14ymedio inside Cuba?

14ymedio is blocked inside Cuba by the government. It is accessible via VPNs and distributed through offshore channels; the Cuban government classifies it as counterrevolutionary.

Background

14ymedio is Cuba's leading independent digital news outlet, founded in 2014 and directed by journalist Yoani Sánchez. Launched and based in Miami, it relies on a network of journalists operating inside Cuba under persistent pressure — detentions, harassment, and restricted communications. The site is blocked inside Cuba and accessible primarily through VPNs and offshore digital distribution. Its coverage of Cuban politics, economy, and society is explicitly independent; the Cuban government classifies it as counterrevolutionary. 14ymedio is widely cited by international media, NGOs, and US government bodies as a primary source on Cuban domestic conditions.

On 28 January 2026 Sánchez was detained by Cuban State Security in Havana — one day before President Trump signed Executive Order 14380. The publication continued to operate and she has since remained a contributor and podcast host. The detention drew condemnations from press freedom organisations including RSF and CPJ.

Through the spring and early summer of 2026, 14ymedio has functioned as the primary independent verifier of Cuba's compound crisis: documenting the prison-death toll (nine documented deaths in 2026 by late April), reporting hunger strikes by Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara and Maykel Osorbo, and tracking the cascade of utility failures in Havana. By 3 June 2026, the outlet was reporting gas cuts across Havana neighbourhoods, roughly 100,000 children going without their state milk ration, and water failures across Centro Habana, Cerro, Diez de Octubre and Regla — each figure sourced from its Cuba-based network rather than from state disclosure.

14ymedio's coverage of the 3-4 June cacerolazo protests in Havana and Guanabacoa reached international audiences hours before any state acknowledgement, reconfirming its role as the fastest on-island signal available to foreign correspondents. The outlet operates in a narrow, monitored margin: its Cuba-based contributors cannot be named without placing them at risk under an apparatus that detained its director at the moment of maximum diplomatic sensitivity.